


Colder

by Readem



Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi, Worldbuilding, vampire powers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:40:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27097468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Readem/pseuds/Readem
Summary: Leaving life with her mother behind was both easier and far more devastating than Bella could imagine.Easily befriending a strange family at her new high school, Bella enfolds herself in mystery and supernatural forces. Where will this unwitting adventure leave her?
Relationships: Alice Cullen/Jasper Hale, Carlisle Cullen/Esme Cullen, Edward Cullen/Bella Swan, Emmett Cullen/Rosalie Hale
Kudos: 9





	Colder

The mountains and forests looked bluer from above.

Standing outside, in the cool air, Bella couldn’t help but enjoy the greens and blues of the landscape. Even the asphalt had a different sheen to it, a moist aura that amplified the breeze. The stark contrast to Arizona - where walking from the front door to the end of the driveway could make you thirsty - was exhilarating in a way that Bella was surprised to enjoy. Granted, it had been years since she had visited, and she had definitely changed.

Adjusting her grip on the suitcases she’d grabbed from the ludicrously tiny baggage claim, Bella limped toward the lot, Charlie’s police cruiser obvious and solitary. He clambered out as she neared, hurrying toward her in an awkward shuffle as he sheathed his radio - apparently he’d been talking on the walkie while he waited.

Neither of them said much, each feeling the need to greet the other but not understanding how. Their relationship was strained by time and distance, though Bella loved her father fiercely and knew he felt the same for her. Eventually, standing at the back of the car, she made the leap, pressing her face into the rain-dampened collar of his uniform and hugging him as tightly as she could. The bulky utility belt made things a little awkward, but they shared a laugh and he murmured in her ear how happy he was to have her there, and a tightness in her chest she hadn’t recognized loosened.

Reunited, and awkward hugs aside, the drive to Charlie’s home was pleasant. Bella struggled in her head to think of him directly as ‘dad’ and not ‘Charlie’, a remnant of Renee’s hippie-progressive parenting goals. It felt good to relax into his presence, and as the greenery flew by, Bella began to remember smaller things from her childhood in Forks: visiting the beach, the reservation, the myriad of mom and pop restaurants with pavilion seating, playing in the woods and swinging on vines while bellowing like Tarzan and Jane, Girl Scouts badges and s’mores every weekend…

“You know,” Charlie said, interrupting her line of thinking, “I want you to know that I’m proud of you, Isabella Swan.” He kept his intense gaze on the road, for which she was thankful. Vaguely Bella noted that she recognized the houses - they were near his home. “Moving is never easy, and with your mom… I want you to know I see it, how hard things have been for you, taking care of her and keeping things together to the end.” He coughed a bit, and the moisture in his eyes made Bella’s tear up too. “Your mom and I couldn’t have asked for a better daughter. Just- just don’t forget that you’re not alone up here, and that for all we’ve had some distance the past few years, I still love you and I’m here for you.”

There wasn’t much to say to that, other than, “Thanks, dad. I love you too.” Staring at her lap, Bella kept the tears in, blinking rapidly and hoping not to break down on the ride home. What a terrible record that would be.

The last block was spent in comforting silence, and they continued the trend as they unloaded her things and brought them into the house. Charlie had remodeled a few years ago, preparing to move in with his then-fiance and her two children, so though things hadn’t ended up working out and he still lived alone, the house had changed. 

Her childhood bedroom had been modified into a suite, though the bathroom was a jack-and-jill that connected to what had been the old master, with a smaller room across the hall that had been added on to the south side of the house. Upstairs was a bit musty and unused, though it was obvious he had tried to air out the space and give it a quick cleaning before Bella arrived. The main floor now held Charlie’s room, a bedroom he used as an office, and the family area off the kitchen. The whole thing was brighter, but it was obvious that Charlie hadn’t attempted to decorate much after Colleen had left, and the walls were largely bare, in mostly light blues and greys. A series of her school photos and old shots from before Bella was born were the only exception, decorating the entertainment center in the living room. The kitchen gave Bella pause, too; she still remembered the bright sun-like glare of the yellow cabinets that Renee had painted only a few months before she had left Charlie and taken Bella with her. Now they were a chocolate brown, and ruefully Bella noted that to be a trend with her father; every woman he’d loved had decorated his kitchen, then left him.

Settling in took no time at all, though Bella switched things up by taking the old master on the second floor. The windows facing the back yard were large, with sheer white curtains, and the woods behind them were dark and deep. Curling up on the wide window seat had a definite appeal, and when Charlie nervously checked in on her, the smile and answer she gave were honest. Yes, she was happy. Things were looking up.  
\--

The next day marked the weekend, and most of it was spent lazing about the house, though there was a grocery run made, and a quick trip to the local catch-all store for toiletries and smaller things for Bella, though she did splurge on some yarn. She didn’t want much; really, she’d never been materialistic, and recent events had only proven to her that the things you need aren’t things you could buy.

Sunday meant Charlie was focused on the game, and Bella sat downstairs with him, intermittently reading and watching, cheering on the Seahawks when Charlie did, and idly finger-knitting a chunky blanket. It wasn’t until Sunday evening that they had any sort of serious conversation. Sitting on the front porch, enjoying the morning air and exchanging waves with friendly strangers out walking pets, Charlie spoke up.

“School starts tomorrow.” He took a moment to sip his coffee, wiping his mustache on a napkin. “Are you ready?”

“As I’ll ever be, dad. Honestly, I’m not nervous, or anything - it just feels, I don’t know, separate from what happened in Phoenix.” Bella shrugged, burrowing into her own mug. “I don’t know if that’s weird, or if I’m acting abnormal, but… it just feels like everything took so long to happen, and now that it’s done, I’m just ready for the next thing.”

“Well, I can’t say I’m upset with that, Bella. Though I can’t say I’m not worried for you either,” Charlie said honestly, looking anywhere but her. His introvert was showing. “Just, if you find that’s not how you feel when you get to school tomorrow, you can come right home; I won’t care. Call me and I’ll pick you up.”

“No problem, dad.” Bella smiled warmly at her father, and he smiled at her, flicking his upper lip to make his mustache dance; she laughed - it was the same move he’d done since she was in diapers. “I’m actually a little excited to start over; some of the girls I knew were getting a little full of drama, if you know what I mean. It’ll be nice to start fresh.”

“Are you keeping contact with anyone?”

Tapping her nails against her mug, Bella shook her head. “There wasn’t anyone I really was close to like that; with Phil’s job, we’d been moving a lot. I didn’t like anyone enough to make the effort, honestly. And I’m not a social media person, so…” They continued to chat a little, talking about people who still lived in the area, parts of town that had changed, and those that hadn’t, until Charlie stood up, shaking the remains of his cup into the flowerbed.

“Well, Bella, I hope you don’t mind me driving you to school tomorrow; we’re close enough the bus would take longer. I meant to get you a car, and Billy Black had an old truck he was going to sell me, but a friend of his kid on the reservation got in a wreck and bought it for double what I was going to.”

“No problem, dad. I don’t mind. It’s a step up from walking in the 110 degree sun.” Charlie laughed, taking her empty mug as he traipsed indoors, leaving her to rock gently on the porch swing.

“Yeah, I guess it would be.”  
\--

School the next day was strange but good. Charlie insisted on walking with her into the office, and past a token protest, Bella didn’t push back. She knew it likely looked like she was in trouble with the law, but this was a dad moment she didn't want to deny him. The woman inside at the desk simpered at her dad - who really was an attractive man, for someone middle aged and as heartbroken as he’d been - and Bella was glad when he finally drove away in his cruiser, her new schedule and a map of the buildings in her hand. It wasn’t too difficult to find where to go, not after moving from district to district and navigating sprawling campuses containing thousands of students. There was even a bit of charm in the gray buildings, and Bella ignored the awkwardness of the moment to pull out her phone and take a few photos. She liked to document her life that way, and had been glad of the effort a thousand times over.

Next to the building she needed, there were a series of raised cement tables and benches, built with the hope of sunshine and covered with a rotting half-pavilion. A girl was lounging there, and seeing her flicked some switch in Bella’s brain that said, “Pay! Attention!” She was gorgeous, but otherworldly, with luxurious blonde hair to her lower back and facial features so sharp she could cut your heart out. Her looks and her amber eyes belonged in a photoshopped fashion magazine, not a damp cement bench in the middle of nowhere. Drawn in, Bella didn’t decide to approach her so much as she just did.

“Morning!” she called out, internally wincing at the slightly manic sound of her voice. The girl didn’t look up from her phone, though Bella could tell she had been noticed. In an effort to give herself an out, she asked, “is this building six? It’s my first day and I’m trying to find French.”

The girl slowly looked up, eyes vibrating slightly in a way that gave Bella the impression she’d been looked over faster than her own eyes could process. The other gave her a small smile, and said, “you must be the new girl. Isabella, right?”

“What? Yes? How do you know my name?”

The other laughed. “Everyone at this school knows who you are, dear. Your father is the chief of police, and a rumor started up a week ago that his daughter was moving to town.” She got up with a grace that made Bella straighten her back, and she was a little dismayed to note that the other girl was at least 5’10”, dwarfing Bella’s already short 5’3”. “I’m Rosalie Cullen. You’re in the right place, and it looks like we’ll be having class together.”

French went well, though Bella’s attention was frequently distracted by the beautiful Rosalie. She was just the kind of person you couldn’t help but notice, even after you already knew she was there. The magnetism of her presence was almost palpable, though by the end of the lesson she was able to ignore it, for all that she could still feel it. Rosalie didn’t talk much, outside of conversational French, though when she did speak the words were sharp. Bella had noticed it before, especially with the way Rosalie peppered in endearments - like ‘dear’ and ‘sweetie’ - and she hadn’t felt condescended to, though the potential was there.

The class seemed like it would be a good one; French 4 was all seniors, and Bella was glad to have been moved up a year, with her homeschooling credits from the last semester. The class was conversation-based, and Mrs. Forbes was a little eccentric, so it was good that she and Rosalie were getting along, especially given how fluent the other was. As they were leaving, Rosalie glanced at Bella’s schedule and stopped with a strange look on her face.

“What?” Bella asked, nervous again, “is something wrong?”

“No,” Rosalie shook her head, before pulling out a pencil lightning-quick and making a few small notes in the margin in startlingly even handwriting. “It seems that you’ll be stalking my family. There are five of us and you have classes with everyone. Today you’ll see Alice and Jasper, tomorrow Edward once and Emmett twice. And I’ll see you tomorrow; that choir class you have fourth period with Emmett, I have, too.”

“As long as your family is like you, that won’t be a problem.” Bella smiled and turned toward a smaller building nearer the parking lot with a final wave. “See you later, Rosalie.”  
\--

Alice was like her sister and yet not.

As a polyglot-hopeful, Bella was taking Spanish 3 and German 3 as well, which turned out to be the shared classes she had with Alice and Jasper in sequence. Later she would note that all of them had the same devastating looks that made Bella’s heart ache, and though they held people’s attention it wasn’t the same as the magnetism Rosalie held. Their skin was all versions of pale, and Alice mentioned that they had moved a few years back from Alaska; honestly Bella shouldn’t judge, based on her own skin tone. Even after living in five southern states she’d never managed even a light tan.

Alice was energetic where Rosalie was languid; the girl and Bella were of a height, though Alice seemed larger simply because of her liveliness. Alice had practically danced up to her before class began, and introduced herself, saying Rosalie had texted her about their new friend. The way she spoke made it seem like they had already known each other for years, and that they had just been at a distance. Senora Mota-Luis caved easily to Alice’s request that she move next to Bella, and proceeded to fuzz Bella’s brain over with twenty questions about Bella herself, dazzling the other girl with her energy. She didn’t have to be talking for Bella to feel it, either; sometimes she would stare intensely at a spot for a moment (or three) and there would be almost a cloud of static that gathered around her. Sometimes Bella imagined that there was a phantom image dusting at the corners of her eyes when Alice did that, though nothing concrete ever came of it.

Spanish passed in a whirlwind with Alice, and suddenly it was lunch, though Bella bowed out of the other girl’s request to sit with her and her family. Bella definitely needed a few minutes to be an introvert and process the morning. There was something nagging the back of her brain that she couldn’t quite voice, but she also wanted to see the library and what it had to offer, before she went out and tried to purchase any books.

The school library and the public library were actually one and the same; the building itself was across the street, though in town as they were it was a small two-laned road with a stop sign. Inside it was relatively nice, obviously remodeled within the last few years, with a lot of mosaics meant to mimic local landmarks and give homage to the landscape. Bella ended up getting a card, thankful that it was a small enough town that the librarian working knew her father, so she didn’t have to prove her address. She took a few classics as well, just to have some variety in the case of boredom, and put a hold on Les Miserables. 

Walking back, people were already starting to stream out of the lunch room/gym, and so Bella simply popped in some gum and resolved to eat a snack when she arrived home.

German came after lunch, and with it, Jasper. Bella still wasn’t completely certain how the Cullens were related, but the way Alice had talked about Jasper, she was fairly certain they weren’t blood relatives, or at least not siblings. It seemed like there was a romantic attachment, but she definitely didn’t want to ask and offend.

Jasper was much quieter, and honestly blended into the background for all that he was as beautiful as Rosalie. There was an easy sort of emotional void around him, and it was calming to be near him. In the way that Alice generated an electric field, he was a null space, like an open palm waiting to be handed something. After greeting her quietly, his very slight Southern accent piquing her ear, he seemed content to sit and passively enjoy her company. After the tiring morning of new sights and people, Jasper was welcome, and she enjoyed German very much. The German teacher was a tired man in his sixties who didn’t bother even introducing himself to her, but he spoke fluidly and Bella spent a lot of time trying to wrap her head around a few pronunciations.

Near the end of class, Jasper initiated conversation.

“So, Bella, at lunch Rosalie and Alice said you were in their French and Spanish classes, too?” Bella laughed at his curious expression.

“Yeah, I’m really interested in language. I want to become a translator, and maybe travel in college, though I’m not sure what my focus will be.” She started gathering her stuff as people started shifting, nervous for the bell. “I started with French earlier than the others, so I’m a bit ahead there, but I practice fairly often. I’m better at writing and reading than speaking, though; I don’t really know anyone to practice with.” Jasper was silent for a moment, though as the bell rang he surprised her.

“I’m sure we could practice. Maybe you and my family could get together sometime? We all have some sort of advanced language focus, though Emmett does Russian through the community college.”

“Y-yeah, that would be great! Thank you!” Bella stuttered a little, happy and a little blown away. She hadn’t thought that they’d gotten that close so fast, though maybe this was the norm for the Cullens. “We’ll have to make a plan some other time, though; I don’t want to be late! See you later.”

“Bye, Bella.”  
\--

After three classes with the Cullens, English was remarkably relaxing. There was no weird energy, no strangely beautiful people, no five minute friendships. A few times Bella did turn around, feeling as if someone had tapped her on the back of the head, but she chalked it up to the low fan Mrs. Richart kept circulating in the back of the room, near an air freshener. It was nice, and made the room smell like warm pie instead of damp.

They were in the middle of reading The Poisonwood Bible, which was new to Bella, and she was thankful for the permission by the teacher to spend the period trying to get caught up. A few boys in the front tried to catch her eye, but she pretended she didn’t notice them, or the intense stare of a girl who sat behind them, her silky black hair as dark as her glare. Hormones; who needed them?

Pretending to be on the phone shielded her from anyone after school ended, and Charlie was waiting for her in the lot. Speeding home, he dropped her off and went back to his rounds, leaving her to work on homework and enjoy a late lunch.  
\--

Later that evening while prepping a chicken salad, Bella finally realized what had been nagging her in Spanish - none of the Cullens had been breathing correctly. It likely wouldn't have been noticeable, except she’d been paying them so much attention, and seen three of them in succession. Jasper did it, too, perhaps even more obviously. They all had a very long, slow draw, like they were meditating, and the speed of their breath obviously picked up before they spoke, matching to their voice. Alice was noticeable in that she spoke quickly and often, so the switch was more immediate. Rosalie had been the most innocuous, but it was still here.

There were so many small things about them that just didn’t add up; maybe Bella had been watching too many mystery stories, but she had a gut feeling that she was on a trail. There were also the strange energies that all of them possessed - or lack thereof, for Jasper - which weren’t exactly like anything she’d felt before.

Over the course of the evening those thoughts kept coming to her, but eventually Bella decided she didn’t really have a leg to stand on as of yet, and that she’d just continue paying attention the next day, with Edward and Emmett. Maybe she was imagining things, given the stress of the new school, and new faces. It was easy to look for an explanation, given how beautiful they were, and idly Bella wondered if the others had that same look or not? So many questions.

Curling into bed that night, Bella dreamed of her new friends, the shadowy images of them welcoming her to a place she’d never seen before.  
\--

The next day of classes went much the same, at least at the beginning. Charlie was running late and dropped her off with barely enough time for her to sprint in the door as the bell rang. First was the choir class that Rosalie and Emmett had with her. The teacher let her know that they had just finished a piece, so that she could just enjoy listening that day and she’d be exempted until next class. Privately, Bella was glad. She knew she had a good voice, but being the center of attention was not something she wanted or was used to, and many of her old choir teachers had asked her to sing a sample piece in front of the class as a new student. Emmett and Rosalie, sitting in the back, had given her a thumbs up and waved, though she’d been assigned a seat on the opposite side of the room next to a quiet, soft girl who introduced herself as Angela.

Bella didn’t get much chance to interact with Emmett, though his deep bass was unmistakable next to Rosalie’s soprano. With very few boys in the mixed choir, they were a little weighted toward the top of the scale, but Emmett alone brought them down a full octave, if needed. Bella did get the sense that he was showing off a bit, if only by the looks that Rosalie gave him.

Patiently, she noted the things she had thought over after school the day before, and came to the conclusion that she wasn’t crazy, that Emmett fit the same pattern and that, yes, they didn’t breathe like other people. It was almost an afterthought.

As class was released, and Rosalie and Emmett said goodbye, Rosalie invited her to sit with them at lunch. With a tentative yes, Bella separated off toward pre-calc.

Mr. Heath was a younger teacher, possibly late twenties, and acted like he was blessed to be teaching every second. Unfortunately, the enthusiasm prompted him to make Bella introduce herself, and after a gruellingly awkward introduction, knowing that through gossip everyone already knew who she was, Bella sat down next to a guy who introduced himself as Eric.

“Hey, new girl, Bella,” he said during a lull in class, where Mr. Heath was trying to find a working overhead marker, “are you friends with the Cullens?”

The question made everyone sitting in the tiny room tilt to hear, and vaguely Bella wasn’t sure if it would be a positive or negative to say “yes.”

“I would say I am, yes. I just met them yesterday, though, and not all of them.” A blonde girl growled in frustration and near-glared at Bella.

“You don’t even try and they talk to you!” She grunted. “I’ve been trying to get Edward’s attention for two years and none of them have even spoken to me, and you come in without trying!”

“I’m sorry?” Bella questioned, confused. She hadn’t even met Edward yet.

“Ignore Lauren,” Eric chimed in. “It’s just weird; they’re nice, but they’re really distant. I don’t think they hang out with anyone outside themselves, not since they moved here. I think-”

A girl Bella hadn’t been introduced to cut him off. “They’re all together, even though they’re adopted siblings. Too good to date or talk to other people-”

The conversation would have gone on longer, but Mr. Heath called class back to order. Bella was a little glad for the end of that; she was uncomfortable hearing negative things about people who had been so nice to her, as strange as they were. Everyone else seemed more interested in gossip and sex, which was what she was used to from high school students, and it was refreshing that the Cullens were different. The fact that they were dating hadn’t been shocking. Even without specific introductions, it was a little obvious that Rosalie and Emmett were together, and to a lesser degree Alice and Jasper.

Overall, Bella was glad to have the excuse, as the bell rang, to escape Lauren and Eric with the statement that she’d been invited to sit at lunch with the Cullens.  
\--

Given how short lunch was, with only about 25 minutes between bells, Bella had decided to make her lunch. That day she took cheese, crackers, and some strawberries, though she did purchase tea from the lunch line. Glancing around at the filling lunch room, she really wasn’t sure where to go until she felt a tap on the back of her arm, just above her elbow. Whirling, she came face-to-face with Rosalie and Alice.

“Hey Bella! We’re at this table,” Alice said, guiding her over to a table in the far corner, away from the windows near the fire door. Because the gym and lunch room were the same, it was a little separated on the other side by some racks of basketballs and other equipment. The three chatted vaguely about their day, Rosalie mentioning that ‘the boys’ were getting lunch for them, too.

Then, she saw him. Walking in between Emmett and Jasper was another boy, similar in looks in ways that could only mean he was a Cullen, and devastatingly handsome. Later, Bella would think that there wasn’t anything specific she could name that made him more beautiful or handsome than his brothers, but the overall effect to her was like some angelic being who had descended from heaven. If Romance movies were real, she was sure he would have been crowned in a halo of light. Regardless, his mussed, reddish brown hair and sharp jaw did terrible things to her heartbeat, and briefly she felt faint, though the moment passed quickly when their eyes met. In the opposite direction, she felt a sort of energy build around them, and that nagging tapping feeling she’d felt the other day in English came back, persistently.

Smoothly, the boys sat down, and Emmett broke her concentration on Edward.

“Hey there Bella! We didn’t get to talk earlier; glad you came! This here’s Edward, and you know everyone else!”

“Hey Emmett,” Bella grinned a little, trying to cover her earlier space-out. Given Alice’s meaningful look, she probably wasn’t totally successful; even Jasper had an air about him. “Thanks. I’m seriously glad you guys are here; it’s like a build-a-bear friend group. I’ve not been… impressed at the other options.” Before she put her foot in her mouth or went so far as to bad-mouth those she’d just left in pre-calc, Bella busied herself with shoving crackers in her mouth, draining her tea quickly. The others played a bit with their food, but didn’t seem to be very hungry.

“I heard you met Lauren,” Edward piped up, and his smooth voice made the hair on Bella’s arms stand up, a rush of heat going through her. “She’s been… interested in me,” he continued, “and didn’t take it well when I didn’t return her feelings. Gossip hasn’t followed kindly.”

“Yeah, I can imagine,” Bella laughed, making meaningful eye contact with Rosalie. “If everyone can know who I am before I even have a class schedule, I’m sure the rumor mill can fill in gaps you didn’t even know you had before dinner.”

Conversation flowed easily after that, the Cullens trading off talking about mundane things, though sometimes for Bella’s benefit they gave a little more information than they likely needed to. She learned about a few hobbies of theirs, and a little about their family structure and when they were each adopted. She didn’t pry, or offer anything up past the knowledge that she’d lived with her mom in Arizona but circumstances had changed. Thankfully, they didn’t press either.

The whole time Bella was aware of Edward on a level she had not previously experienced, though it was different to the magnetism of Rosalie or the energies that lingered around the Cullens. It was like putting on a pair of glasses, and finally seeing clearly, or noticing something you always had but weren’t aware of. With so much to think and talk about, lunch passed quickly, and she and Emmett left for the locker room and the gym class that they shared.

Being away from Edward was like being without a limb, but also allowed her head to be clear for the first time since she’d seen him. Emmett chatted idly about sports teams, Bella chipping in with her meager knowledge, though he made fun of her a little when she mentioned a quarterback who had retired a few years ago. Not her forte.

PE went by easily, the group finishing a unit on team sports with bowling. They rotated being bowlers and pinsetters, someone’s ipod on the loudspeaker to block out the noise of the lunch ladies cleaning up.

And then, finally, hair damp from the random rainshower, Bella arrived at Advanced Biology, which she shared with Edward. Dressing out had taken some time from passing period, and when she arrived class was basically starting. Mr. Banner directed her, funnily enough, to sit next to Edward at a lab table, ancient stools built into the table and forcing them into close contact. The closer she got the more that energy feeling from before built, and though he didn’t say anything, Bella could only assume he felt it too. His eyes seemed to darken, and he gripped the table like it was a lifeline.

They were watching a video about cellular reproduction and genes, something Mr. Banner had obviously recorded on a VCR from the Discovery channel, and when the lights were shut off, the feeling seemed to increase. It took everything she had to keep from touching him, and the tingle of lust parked itself in her groin. Bella crossed her arms, leaning on them and driving her fingers into the meat of her biceps, running through Spanish verbs in her head when focusing on the video became impossible. Inevitably, they made eye contact, and held it there, sustained for several minutes before Bella jolted herself back to reality and stood up so fast she nearly fell over.

With a quick excuse to Mr. Banner, she left toward the bathroom, splashing water on her face and giving a pep talk to herself in the mirror.

“You can do this - think of it later. Don’t be weird. You can go in there - it’s only another half hour, then you’re home free. Don’t try to jump him in class. C’mon Bella!”

Dawdling on the return, she enjoyed the rain and open air, getting that vague tapping feeling again in the back of her skull. Maybe she was developing a muscle spasm?

Back in the room, space seemed to have helped, and she’d wasted a full ten minutes on her excursion. Mr. Banner turned off the movie shortly after she returned, opening a discussion on what they’d watched and a little on what they’d see next class with a lab identifying the different phases of mitosis. Technically Bella had taken regular Biology before; her language classes had forced her to drop Chemistry for Advanced Bio to fit the class offerings, so she was familiar with the lab that Mr. Banner outlined.

Edward seemed like he wanted to say something to her as they packed their things and left, but ended up giving a swift, but heartfelt, “See you tomorrow, Bella,” and left like she had chased him. Only after he spoke did she realize he hadn’t been breathing most of class.

She thought of nothing else but him and the Cullens the rest of the day and into the night.


End file.
